Gray Parrot

Identification

The grey parrot is medium-sized, predominantly grey and black-billed. Its typical weight is 400 g (14 oz), with an approximate length of 33 cm (13 in), and a wingspan of .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);clip-path:polygon(0px 0px,0px 0px,0px 0px);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}46–52 cm (18–20+1⁄2 in). The head and wings are generally darker than the body. Head and body feathers have slight white edges; the tail feathers are red.<p>Due to selection by breeders, some grey parrots are partly or completely red. Both sexes appear similar. Juvenile colouration is similar to that of adults, but typically their eyes are dark grey to black, compared to adults' yellow irises around dark pupils, and their undertail coverts are tinged with grey. Adults weigh 418–526 g (14+3⁄4–18+1⁄2 oz).<p>Grey parrots may live for 40–60 years in captivity, although their mean lifespan in the wild appears to be shorter — approximately 23 years. They start breeding at an age of 3–5 years and lay 3-5 eggs per brood.

Taxonomy

The grey parrot was formally described in 1758 by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of Systema Naturae. He placed it with all other parrots in the genus Psittacus and coined the binomial name Psittacus erithacus. Linnaeus erroneously specified the type locality as "Guinea": the locality was later designated as Ghana in West Africa. The genus name is Latin for "parrot". The specific epithet erithacus is Latin and is derived from the Ancient Greek εριθακος (erithakos) for an unknown bird that was said to mimic human sounds, perhaps the black redstart. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.<p>The Timneh parrot was formerly treated as a subspecies of the grey parrot, but is now considered a separate species based mainly on results from a genetic and morphological study published in 2007. Although Linnaeus placed all the parrots known to him in the genus Psittacus, only the grey parrot and the Timneh parrot are now assigned to this genus.

Scientific name

Psittacus erithacus

Authority

Linnaeus, 1758

Order

Psittaciformes

Family

Psittacidae

Genus

Psittacus

Range and habitat

The grey parrot is native to equatorial Africa, including Angola, Cameroon, the Congo, Gabon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Kenya, and Uganda. The species is found inside a range from Kenya to the eastern part of the Ivory Coast. Current estimates for the global population are uncertain and range from 630,000 to 13 million birds. Populations are decreasing worldwide. The species seems to favor dense forests, but can also be found at forest edges and in more open vegetation types, such as gallery and savanna forests.<p>A population study published in 2015 found that the species had been "virtually eliminated" from Ghana with numbers declining 90 to 99% since 1992. They were found in only 10 of 42 forested areas, and three roosts that once held 700–1200 birds each, now had only 18 in total. Local people mainly blamed the pet trade and the felling of timber for the decline. Populations are thought to be stable in Cameroon. In the Congo, an estimated 15,000 are taken every year for the pet trade, from the eastern part of the country, although the annual quota is stated to be 5,000.<p>The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission indicated they have spotted grey parrots escaped or been released into South Florida since at least 1984, but no evidence indicates that the population is breeding naturally.

Migration

Resident species

Conservation

Natural predators for this species include palm-nut vultures and several raptors. Monkeys target eggs and the young for food.<p>Humans are by far the largest threat to wild grey populations. Between 1994 and 2003, more than 359,000 grey parrots were traded on the international market. Approximately 21% of the wild population was being harvested every year. Mortality rates are extremely high between the time they are captured and they reach the market, ranging from 60 to 66%. This species also is hunted for its meat and for its body parts, which are used in traditional medicines. As a result of the extensive harvest of wild birds, in addition to habitat loss, this species is believed to be undergoing a rapid decline in the wild and therefore, has been rated as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.<p>In October 2016, the Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Fauna and Flora (CITES) extended the highest level of protection to grey parrots by listing the species under Appendix 1, which regulates international trade in the species.<p>In 2021, the Kenyan government held a short amnesty, during which grey parrot owners could pay a fee to obtain a permit for their birds and facilitate legal ownership. Following the expiry of this time period, it is now illegal to own this species without a permit.

Population trend

declining